Two dogs in mauling ordered euthanized

Updated 10:19 pm, Friday, June 15, 2012

PITTSTOWN — Two dogs that mauled a town man earlier this week were ordered euthanized Friday afternoon by Town Justice Kenneth Marbot.

James Seror, 65, of Tory Hill Road remained at Albany Medical Center Hospital on Friday with more than 100 dog bites incurred in the attack Wednesday afternoon.

The mixed breeds Apollo and Buddy, owned by Seror's brother and sister-in-law Arthur and Kathy Seror, repeatedly bit James Seror after they got loose from a porch and went next door to their victim's residence.

During the dangerous-dog hearing at Town Hall, Marbot listened to Kathy Seror and Dan Gifford, a town animal control officer, describe the events surrounding the attack.

Nicole Seror D'Angelo, James Seror's daughter, handed the judge a small stack of photos showing the extensive bite wounds that her father suffered. She said she spent the first 24 hours with him at the hospital and has visited him since.

"I'm going to order that Apollo and Buddy be euthanized and a rabies test made," Marbot said.

The judge directed Gifford to carry out the order as quickly as possible.

Another dog, JD, was seized with Apollo, a pit bull mix, and Buddy, a beagle mix. Marbot ordered that the dog be examined to determine its temperament and whether it is trainable. He ordered Gifford to report back Wednesday.

The Rensselaer County Sheriff's Office continues to investigate the case, and charges may be filed. Deputies said they have responded to three calls involving dogs at the Tory Hill residences.

Kathy Seror had asked the judge to release JD to her, but the dog will remain at a local kennel pending the determination of its fate. The dogs are licensed in her name, but she described Apollo and Buddy as belonging to both her and her husband.

Seror left the courtroom immediately after Marbot's ruling. When asked for comment, she repeatedly shook her head "no" and was driven away in a car by another woman.

D'Angelo declined to comment about her father's situation and the case. She was surrounded by family friends who talked to her about the situation.

Arthur Seror, 67, did not attend the dog hearing as he is being held in the Rensselaer County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bail in an unrelated domestic incident.

Seror was charged with second-degree menacing, resisting arrest, second-degree reckless endangerment and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon after the Thursday incident at his home, State Police at Loudonville said.